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AMSTERDAM — A Dutch cyclist, riding for the Terrengganu team in Malaysia, has escaped a
Malaysian Airline crash. Twice.

Maarten de Jonge, 29, born in the Dutch town of Oldenzaal according to his website, was planning
to travel back to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital, on Flight MH17 from Amsterdam’s Schiphol
Airport on Thursday after visiting his home country to participate in national championships. He
decided to swap flights because traveling via Frankfurt on Sunday would save him money, he told
local broadcaster RTV Oost on Friday.

That decision meant he was not among the 298 people, of whom at least 189 were Dutch citizens,
killed as the jetliner was downed over Ukraine.

In March, de Jonge took another Malaysian Air flight out of Kuala Lumpur, at the same time and
in the same direction as a Boeing Co. 777 wide-body airliner taking off for Beijing. That plane has
been missing without a trace since then, despite the longest search mission in civil aviation.

“I could have taken that one just as easily,” de Jonge told the broadcaster. “It’s
inconceivable. I am very sorry for the passengers and their families, yet I am very pleased I’m
unharmed.”

De Jonge didn’t respond to an email seeking comment. In a statement on his website Friday he
said he was “overwhelmed” by the responses and requests he has received since posting a tweet “Had
I departed today, then …” He declined to comment further out of respect for the victims and their
families.